1 cup cake flour (not self rising)1 1/2 cups superfine sugar1 3/4 cups large egg whites (the recipe said 13 eggs, but some of mine were very large and I used 11), room temperature1 tbs warm water1/2 tsp salt1 tsp cream of tartar1 tsp vanillaPreheat oven to 350 with wire rack in the center.In a medium bowl sift together flour and 3/4 cup sugar, four times, set asideIn the bowl of an electric mixer (whisk attachment) beat egg whites and warm water on low speed until foamy. Add salt, cream of tartar and vanilla and beat on medium-high until soft peaks form, about 3 minutes. While beating gradually add the remaining 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tbs at a time. Beat on high until peaks are stiff and glossy, but not dry, about 2 minutes. Do not overmix.Sift flour mixture over egg white mixture in six parts. Folding it in quickly, but gently with a rubber spatula.Transfer mixture to ungreased 10 inch tube pan. Run a knife through the batter to release any airbubbles, then smooth with an offset spatula.Bake until cake is golden and springs back when touched. 35 to 40 minutes.Invert pan onto its legs and let cool completely for one hour. Carefully run a large spatula around the sides of the cake to loosen, then invert onto a wire rack.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

This is what Greg did today. He only put down all the whole pieces so we could actually walk on it again in the morning. Tomorrow will be a day of rest, well sort of. Greg has to go to work this one day and nothing will get done. Thursday he'll try and get all the tiles cut and put down.I'm sure a professional would go about this differently, but this way works for us.

Sunday, December 27, 2009

With the exception of yesterday, we stayed home the last few days. Just enjoyed some time at home doing things we like.Nadia not only likes, but LOVES her skateboard. She's outside every day, even if it is freezing cold. This was taken on the 25th and it was extremely cold outside, the wind was nasty. Didn't stop Nadia. She put on two pairs of socks, two jackets, a scarf, mittens, hat and winter boots and practiced in the driveway. She's getting pretty good by now...Die letzten paar Tage waren wir nur zuhause und haben uns mit Sachen beschaeftigt, die uns Spass machen.Nadia liebt ihr Skateboard! Sie ist bei Wind und Wetter draussen, und die letzten paar Tage war es bei uns garstig kalt und extrem windig. Hat sie aber nicht davon abgehalten zu ueben, sie hat sich zwei paar Socken, zwei Jacken, Schal, Muetze, Handschuhe und Winterstiefel angezogen und hat in der Auffahrt geuebt. Sie kann es mittlerweile schon ziemlich gut.Hannah received a sand art kit from a friend as a Christmas gift. We sat down and she did all four bottles that came with the kit. She did a really good job, they turned out very pretty.Hannah hat ein Bastelkit von einer Freundin zu Weihnachten bekommen. Man fuellt bunten Sand (in Lagen) in Flaschen rein. Sie hat das am 25. gemacht und die vier Flaschen sind sehr schoen geworden.I was able to sit down and put the knitting machine together. Not the easiest thing in the world, especially since there were NO DIRECTIONS as to how! The booklet that came with the machine only explained how to get started with the knitting, the machine was already supposed to be in working order. There was one drawing in the booklet and I used that to piece things together. Greg figured out how to attach the needles and that's as far as we got.Before...Ich hatte Zeit und konnte mich mit meiner Strickmaschine hinsetzen. Da sie in Teile zerlegt war, musste ich sie erst einmal zusammenbauen. Nicht unbedingt einfach, vor allem da keine Anleitung dabei war!! Das Heft das dabei war, hat nur erklaert wie man das Stricken anfaengt. Die Maschine kam damals naemlich schon zusammengebaut. In dem Heft war eine kleine Zeichnung wie die Maschine aussehen soll, danach habe ich sie zusammmen "gepuzzelt". Greg hat dann noch herausgefunden wie man die Nadeln einsetzt und bis dahin sind wir dann gekommen.Vorher...After...There are a few pieces left, but I since figured out what they are. One is a buckle weight, one a heel hook and the other one is now attached to the machine. Don't really know the name of of the piece. Now I still need to figure out how to get started with the knitting..Nachher...Es liegen noch ein paar Einzelteile neben der Maschine, ich weiss aber mittlerweile was das fuer Teile sind. Fortschritt! Eines ist ein "Fersenhaken", eines ein Gewicht, und das andere Teil (wie sich das nennt, weiss ich nicht) ist mittlerweile an der Maschine befestigt.Jetzt muss ich nur noch herausfinden wie ich mit der Maschine stricke....

Thursday, December 24, 2009

There is no snow on the ground and it's not even really cold here. It is very windy though and we are expecting a powerful storm system with 40+ winds to come through here today. Guess we'll hunker down and just enjoy each others company.The sunrise this morning was gorgeous, a beautiful way to begin the Christmas holidays.

Wishing everybody a very merry Christmas and fun filled days with their loved ones.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

In Germany Christmas is celebrated for several days. The 24th is "Heiliger Abend" (holy night) and that's when we exchange Christmas gifts. The 25th is the first Christmas day and the 26th is the second Christmas day. Growing up we always had a very nice lunch together on the 24th, complete with first course and dessert. We have kind of combined our American and German traditions, and a big part is a nice, festive meal on the 24th.This year our meal will consist of: Sauerbraten (meat soaked in a vinegar brine), Kloesse (potato dumplings), salad and red cabbage.To have the meat ready, it needs to be put into the brine 3-8 days prior to cooking it. That's what I did today.Als ich klein war gab es bei uns am 24 Dezember immer ein leckeres Mittagessen. Meistens mit Suppe als Vorspeise und irgendeinen Nachtisch. Diese Tradition haben wir beibehalten und dieses Jahr gibt es am Heiligen Abend Sauerbraten, Kloesse, Salat und Blaukraut. Den Sauerbraten habe ich heute eingelegt. Das Rezept ist aus dem bayrischen Kochbuch und ich habe es schon oefters hergenommen.Sauerbraten

Brine:3/4 liter water, about 3 cups1/8 - 1/4 liter vinegar, about 1 cupsalt1 onion cut into large chunkssome peppercorns, 3 bay leaves, 2 whole cloves, 4 - 6 juniper berries1 carrot, 1 parsnip and 2 celery stalks cut into large chunksIn the summer I would bring the brine to a boil, let cool and then pour over the meat. In the winter this is not necessary, just make sure the brine covers the meat.Place in fridge for 3 - 8 days.Remove meat from brine, dry and salt a little. Brown the meat on all sides over medium high heat and then transfer to roasting pan. Add about 1/4 of an apple to the roasting pan, as well as 1-2 cut up onions, cut up carrots, parsnips and celery. You can also add a chunk of bread rind. Roast at 425 for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. A large piece of meat might take longer. During the roasting time, baste the meat with some of the (heated and strained ) brine. You might need about 1/2 liter. Once the roast is done, make gravy out of the drippings.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Last night I had a few errands to run and stopped at Michaels to look at their Christmas stuff. All of their Christmas decorations are already 60 % off and they were pretty picked over. I did find these two trees for the girls, marked down from 16.99 to 6.99. Added to that some lights and garlands and I had two very happy girls at home.Nadia decided she wanted to really decorate hers and took a few ornaments of the tree in the living room. We also found a few more small ornaments in boxes for her tree.The first picture is with a flash, to show her ornaments.Gestern abend musste ich noch ein paar Einkaeufe erledigen und bin mal wieder schnell zu Michaels. Sie haben ihre ganze Weihnachtsdeko 60 % reduziert und vieles hatten sie schon gar nicht mehr. Ich habe diese zwei Baeumchen fuer die Maedels gekauft, waren von 16.99 auf 6.99 reduziert. Dazu noch Lichterketten und Girlanden, habe meine Toechter damit sehr gluecklich gemacht.Nadia wollte ihren Baum richtig schmuecken und hat mir auch prompt ein paar Ornamente von meinem Baum geklaut. Wir haben dann aber noch ein paar kleine Holzornamente in den Deko Schachteln gefunden. Das Bild ist mit Blitz gemacht, dass man die Deko besser sieht.This is without a flash, notice her nativity under the tree?Dieses ist ohne Blitz gemacht, seht ihr ihre Krippe unterm Baum?Hannah only wanted the red lights and the garland with the small red stars.I think both did a good job, and both were really excited to have their own tree.Hannah wollte ausser den roten Lichtern und der roten Sternengirlande nichts an ihrem Baum.Ich finde beide sind sehr schoen geworden und meine Maedels waren zufrieden ihre eigenen Baeume zu haben.

About Me

I'm 46 years old and have been married to my hubby for 26 years. We have two wonderful girls, ages 16 and 18. I started this blog to stay in touch with our family and friends in Germany and here in the US. It's a little glimpse into our daily lives...